Search and Seizure

Our constitutional right under the Fourth Amendment to live free of “unreasonable searches and seizures” is one of our most cherished—and most threatened. CLRP works to safeguard this right to privacy and security from police and government intrusion, including through our opposition to unconstitutional stop-and-frisk and selective enforcement policing, especially those practices that disproportionately harm communities of color. We also use litigation to compel law enforcement to abide by proper probable cause and warrant requirements.

While traditional Fourth Amendment violations continue, new areas of concern crop up every day. We need to ensure that the Fourth Amendment, written over 200 years ago to protect our “persons, houses, papers, and effects” from intrusive searches, evolves to protect today’s equivalents. Without proper privacy protections, we risk allowing invasive law enforcement tactics like smartphone searches or cell-site simulators. As technology proliferates, so do opportunities for overbroad searches and surveillance of our most private realms. The ACLU seeks to ensure that the law keep ups with emerging abuses.